Through Thick and Thin
by Foxy's little Angel
Summary: During a routine mission Maka is gravely hurt, and can no longer serve as a meister. Soul now faces the challenge of finding a new partner he can actually work with. SoulxMaka, breif hints of SteinxMarie, JaquciexKim and TezcaxJustin
1. Chapter 1

Hello! This is my Reverse Resonance Bang 2016 story! I hope you enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it. Kudos to my amazing reverb partner, thefishywitch. you can see the amazing artwork she has created on tumblr under thefishywitchy! I, unfortunately, do not own Soul Eater or any of it's amazing characters.

Maka woke slowly, unsure of why she was unable to move. Her left leg and right arm felt trapped when she tried to shift over. Maka opened her slightly swollen eyes, and blinked. She was lying in an infirmary bed, the smell of antiseptic and formaldehyde stinging her nose. For a moment, she had an overwhelming feeling of panic, fearing she was once more immobilized, and Black*Star would soon show up to draw on her face again.

She glanced over and sighed in relief as she identified the reason her movement was impeded. Soul sat by her bedside, his upper body draped over her. He was fast asleep, and her right arm serving as his impromptu pillow. Maka smiled gently. He was a little banged up, and had bandages covering both his hands, but besides that looked no worse for the wear.

She gently ran her left hand through his hair, enjoying the surprisingly soft texture. "Soul, wake up, my arm is falling asleep!" She shook her arm just a little, trying to get a little bit of blood flow back into her hand.

"Mhpphhh?" Soul looked up, eyes red and bleary.

Maka couldn't help but giggle at how cute he looked, with his hair sticking up everywhere and weird imprints in his face. She idly wondered if this was how he would look waking up every morning.

"Morning sleepy-head" she said gently. Soul sat up straight, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

"You're up." He stated. He shot her a small smile, relief written all over his face. To most, Soul seemed cool and unconcerned. But Maka knew better. With her, his guard slipped, just a little, to reveal the soft-heart hidden underneath. "How are you feeling?" Relief was swiftly replaced by concern and a heavy dose of guilt.

Maka shook her head. "Fine, but… I can't move my leg… Soul, why can't I move my leg?" Soul looked to the side, eyes downcast, guilt dancing across his features.

"I'll go get Stein. The Hakase will be able to explain better than I can." Maka watched him go, a frown hovering on her lips. As she waited for Soul to return with Stein, Maka's mind drifted back to the events that had landed her in the infirmary once again.

 _Soul and Maka had been out on an easy routine mission, just hunting down a lone kishin egg. The monster was no longer recognizable as a human, with long, razor sharp tentacles and a squishy, blobby green body. It looked rather like one of those gross squid things. It had creeped Maka out, and even Soul wasn't sure he wanted to consume the thing's soul once they were done with it._

 _The mission should have been easy, after they defeated the kishin. It was child's play; they had let themselves get cocky and complacent. That was their first mistake. They hadn't been paying as much attention as they should have. Maka and Soul were going back and forth, joking around and debating what they were going to have for dinner that night. Maka swung Soul around in his Scythe form with ease, cutting off tentacles left and right._

 _Neither of them noticed the tentacle that managed to sneak up behind them. That was their final mistake. As Maka stepped forwards to cut off another of the offending appendages, the one coiled behind her leapt forwards and struck. It wrapped itself around Maka's left ankle, slicing deep. Maka screamed out in pain, her world going blurry with tears, her vision dancing with black dots. Before she passed out she saw Soul viciously slice through the tentacle, and his fearful red eyes fill her vision._

Maka shook off the memories, not wanting to stress over what was wrong with her ankle. She'd find out soon enough. To distract herself, she looked around the infirmary. Nothing had really changed since the last time she had been here. There were the same random bottles and experiments, same cluttered desk in the corner. Same beds. Same boredom. At least this time she would be able to read.

At first, Maka had thought she was the only one in the room, until her gaze landed on a curtained off bed in the very back corner of the room. She wondered who was behind it, and why it was even curtained off in the first place. She was still trying to puzzle it out when Soul returned with Stein in tow. Maka snapped to attention the moment the door pushed open, anticipation and dread settling into the bottom of her stomach.

"How bad is it?" She asked, not wanting to dally around. Stein nodded in respect.

"The kishin egg partially severed your Achilles tendon in the back of your heel. Kimial and I have done what we can, but it is unlikely you will ever be able to walk properly again. You will most likely need to use a cane as well… I'm sorry.

Maka nodded, and looked away, not wanting to cry in front of the Hakase. She understood what he was trying to say. She would never be able to return to her duties as a meister. Stein reached out, and squeezed her shoulder in an uncharacteristic display of concern and comfort. She offered him a small, grateful smile.

Maka might have broken down just then if an extremely pregnant Marie hadn't burst through the door, carrying an unconscious Jacqueline Dupre with a very upset Kim Diehl trailing anxiously behind. Stein looked over his shoulder, a small smile softening his features when his gaze landed on Marie.

"Here, let me take her. You should not be carrying students; you're about to pop woman!" Stein chastised his wife. Marie just handed Jacquie over with a laugh, affection coloring her features.

Stein laid the unconscious girl on the bed next to Maka, and Kim immediately got to work healing her. Jacquie woke up a moment later, dazed and confused. Kim lightly brushed the hair away from her face.

"Be more careful stupid" she murmured, kissing her lightly on the forehead. Jacquie blushed and nodded.

Maka watched her two friends with concern. "What happened? Are you alright?" Kim waved her off, a smirk playing across her face.

"After you passed out, Soul called us. I did my best to fix your leg, but it was coated in some sort of anti-witch venom. There wasn't much I could do… Anyways, after I tried to fix you up, Jacquie and I covered for you and Soul while he got you out. We got pretty banged up. But everything's alright. We took care of the creepy thing for you. Normally, I'd collect a fee, but I'll let it slide. Just this once."

Maka shot a grateful smile at the two of them as they waved and walked out. Marie stopped to bestow a kiss on Stein's cheek and pats to Soul's and Maka's before going back to teaching. Stein turned to the two of them.

"Maka, you're going to have to stay here a few days, until you're healed up. Soul… I know this is hard to hear but… You're going to need to find a new meister partner."

Soul stood there, feeling numb. He just looked at Stein with a blank stare, not fully comprehending what he meant. Maka was his meister. He didn't want or need anyone else. Just the thought of being wielded by someone else made his stomach turn. He looked to Maka.

To anyone else, she would have appeared calm and rather non-plussed. But Soul knew her. There was anguish dancing in those pretty green eyes. Guilt ripped through Soul at the sight of it. He should have protected her; he shouldn't have been so stupid and cocky.

Maka tried to smile reassuringly at Soul, but to him it looked more like a grimace. "He's right you know. You should look for a new partner." Soul just stared dumbly at her, before slowly nodding. They were right, even if it made him want to puke. Maka reached for his hand, squeezing it reassuringly. This made Soul feel worse. She was the one laying in a hospital bed, because of his carelessness. She would never return to the job she loved, and here she was comforting him.

Soul let go of her hand, and gave one of her pigtails an affectionate tug before heading off to class. Maka watched him go. Stein shouted something about a meister-weapon meet-and-greet this weekend. Maka laid back against the pillows and shut her eyes, longing to fall asleep and forget this world where bad things happen to perfectly good people.

Soul stepped out of the infirmary with a heavy heart. Find a new meister? How could he? It just didn't seem right. He looked up, and blinked. There were three girls standing in the hall, staring at him like they were starving, and he was a particularly delectable meal.

Soul glanced behind him. If he didn't feel obligated to go and get Maka the schoolwork she would be missing, he would run back into the infirmary.

Soul drew himself together, and went to push past the girls. Apparently they weren't having that. One girl with long, blonde hair walked over to him, and placed a hand on his chest, stopping him. The other two came and surrounded him. They were all giggling.

"We hear you need a new partner Soul-kun. How about one of us?" the blonde said.

Soul blinked incredulously at her. "Uh, how about no." he drawled, disdainfully picking her hand off his chest and trying to step around her.

Another one of the vipers took the other's place. This one had red hair and freckles. "Come on Soul? Please? We've all asked and asked, and now SHE is out of the way, what's stopping you?"

Soul was starting to see red at this point. "SHE has a name, it's Maka. And she's twice the meister any of you will ever be."

He shot a glare at the final member of the trio, a brunette, and left. He needed to get his stuff, and then get Maka's make-up work.

Soul hesitantly spun the combination on the locker he hardly ever used. After he finished, he threw open the locker and jumped back, just as a barrage of partner request forms spilled to the ground in front of him. He sighed, and picked them up.

He used to think it was cool, getting all these letters. He would wait for weeks then open the locker and watch with masculine pride as they all fell out. Until he learned how much it bothered Maka. Upsetting his meister is totally uncool. He asked people to stop, but to no avail.

He sighed. Normally he would just throw them all out, but with the way things were now… Well, he should at least glance through them. He half-heartedly stuffed them in his bag, convincing himself shredding them up really wasn't a good option, and grabbed his stuff. He figured he should at least try to pay attention and take notes for Maka.

Soul was walking to class when a small girl came running out of a class room with her arms completely full of random books and papers, and slammed straight into him. Soul managed to keep them both upright, but the girl's things were now all over the hall.

Soul steadied the girl and bent down to help her pick up her things. He waved away her frantic apologies with a hand and a slight smirk. "It's alright. I'm not in a hurry. I'm Soul Eater. Who are you?"

The girl blushed when she realized just who exactly she had crashed into. She brushed her long, straight black hair out of her face, and met Soul's eyes shyly with her sparkling black ones. Soul started a little once he noticed the prominent stars where her pupils should have been. "I'm Ao Hoshino, Scythe Meister. Pleased to meet you! I'm so sorry for running into you!"

Soul transferred her belongings to her with a handshake. "It's fine. Where are you off to in such a hurry anyways?" The girl blinked, before suddenly remembering where she was supposed to be. "Oh! I was just off to the meister/weapon meet and greet!"

"You don't have a partner then?" Ao bashfully shook her head, looking at her feet.

"Well, I'm sure you'll find a partner soon enough." Soul cringed a little as he reminded himself that he would be needing a new partner as well. He lifted her chin a little, studying the Stared pupils. "Are you by any chance related to Akane Hoshi?" Soul asked, curious.

The girl's eyes widened in alarm. She glanced around before nodding. "He's my older brother. We just changed my name a little. Because, well, you know, Akane has made a few enemies…" Soul nodded in understanding.

"Don't worry then. You'll have no trouble finding a partner. I'm sure you're more than competent." Ao gave Soul a shy, soft smile. Soul gave her a half smirk back, before saying goodbye and going on to class. She seemed nice enough he supposed.


	2. Chapter 2

Soul trudged back to the infirmary after class, carrying an unbelievably heavy bag, completely full of Maka's work and notes. He actually paid attention in class today, and he was exhausted. He had no idea how Ox and Maka managed to do this every day.

He had even stopped by the library to grab some books for Maka, so she could ready and study. It was the least he could do, after failing her miserably as a weapon. He pushed the doors open, and trudged over to Maka's bed. He set the books down on her bedside table, and handed her the notes from today along with her classwork.

Maka looked up at him incredulously, a grateful smile playing across her face. "Thank You." Soul nodded, dropping into the chair next to her. He slumped over on the bed and promptly started to snore. Maka let out a soft laugh. She looked through the notes he had taken for her.

 _'These are actually pretty good. If I didn't know his handwriting as well as I know my own, I would have thought he got Ox to take them for me. He must have actually paid attention in class today.'_

Maka gingerly laid her hand atop of Soul's and gave it a light squeeze, being careful not to wake him. She turned her attention back to the notes and books, and they continued on like that for a while. But, after about twenty minutes, Maka realized She Had to Pee. Badly. She glanced around. The bathroom door was at the other end of the room, over by the curtained off bed.

She spared a glance at Soul, who was fast asleep and showed no sign of waking soon. She knew she wasn't supposed to move around on her own, but Soul looked so peaceful, and Maka couldn't bring herself to wake him.

Maka took a deep breath, and reached for the crutches by her bedside. She began making slow, awkward progress towards the bathroom. She was just passing the curtained bed and doing a mental victory dance when disaster struck. One of her crutches slipped and got caught in the curtains, sending the curtains and Maka crashing down, to reveal a seriously injured Justin Law.

"Hello, Maka-Chan" he said pleasantly.

Soul startled awake, searching the room frantically when he realized Maka was not in her bed where she belonged, and had most likely caused the loud crash that had awoken him. He rushed to her side once he located her. "You! Stupid! What were you thi-" Soul stopped once he caught sight of just who was laying in the other infirmary bed. He placed himself between Maka and Justin, his arm becoming a deadly scythe.

Justin merely clucked his tongue. "Come now, there's no need for that." Justin raised his wrists, which were chained to the bed. "Even if I wanted to fight you, I'm hardly in any shape to do so." Soul didn't move, or lower his arm. He stood there glaring at Justin like an over protective guard dog. Maka could almost swear Soul was actually Growling.

Stein rushed in to see what had caused all the noise. "Maka, are you alri-… Well then…" Stein took in the scene before him, his eyes going from the crutches to Maka to the two Death weapons. "Soul, please help Maka to the bathroom while I clean this mess up." Stein shot a glare at Maka. "and please, no more moronic excursions."

Soul finally lowered his arm and went to help Maka, but still kept himself firmly between her and the traitorous death weapon.

Stein shook his head as he righted the curtains. "Stubborn kids" he muttered.

pWhen Maka had finished and made her way back into bed, Stein was waiting for them. "I trust I don't have to tell you to keep your mouths shut?" They both shook their heads. "Good." Stein muttered. He started to turn to go back into the office when Maka stopped him.

"Sempai, why hasn't Justin been, you know…"

"Executed?"

Maka weakly nodded her head.

Stein let out a puff of air. He cast a glance towards the bed in the back. "After I subdued him and took him prisoner, and after everything was said and done, Kidd decided there had been enough death for one day. So, in exchange for information on the other kishin support bases and strongholds, we let him live."

Maka nodded. Secretly, she had always respected the death scythe, and was hurt when he had turned traitor. Justin had actually sat by her bedside a few times after she had been immobilized by Arachne. She had come to be quite fond of the guillotine.

Stein shot her a studying look, and then went back into his office. Maka had just gotten her breath back when the door burst open, and a distraught looking Tsugumi rushed in with Meme, Anya and Ao trailing behind.

"Maka-Sempai! Are you alright?!" The girl cried out, rushing to Maka's side.

Maka smiled fondly at the young girl. "I'm okay Tsugumi-chan. Just a bit banged up is all. How do you like the E.A.T classes?" The girl immediately brightened up, and started prattling on about how much fun it was and how much she was learning.

Soul nodded to Ao, who blushed a bit and waved back. Maka looked between the two of them. "Have you two met?" she asked.

Soul nodded in confirmation. "We bumped into each other this morning." Ao blushed redder. Maka's head tilted to the side. She shot Soul a look. He minutely shook his head. Maka shot Soul another look that was more hostile in nature. Soul rolled his eyes and ignored her, while subtly pulling the books out of her reach.

Eventually, it got late and Nygus came in and shooed the younger girls out. She tried to kick Soul out, but stopped when the young death scythe gave her a particularly dangerous looking glare. Maka turned to Soul. "No." He told her plainly.

"But Soul! You need-"

"You just got hurt Maka! I'm not going to just….."

"Just what?" Soul looked away, working his jaw furiously.

Maka reached out and tugged on his jacket sleeve. "Just what Soul?" Soul shot her a small look.

"Replace you." He murmured. Maka fell back against the pillows, mixed emotions warring in her chest.

Maka realized in that moment, that she really, really didn't want Soul to replace her either. She wanted to keep him all to herself, now and forever. But he needed to keep working. Maka would not allow herself to get in the way of his dreams and ambitions. So, she swallowed her jealousy and put on a brave face.

"You won't be replacing me silly. I'm still right here. You need to keep training your abilities though. There's still a lot you need to learn from Papa and Stein, and you can't do that without a partner. Ao's a good person. I like her." Soul still wouldn't meet her eyes. She leaned over the rail of her bed, and tugged his face around. "Please, Soul. At least think about it." Agonized red eyes met green.

\Soul found that when she was this close, and with her eyes bearing down on his with such intensity, he could not say no. So he nodded, torn apart with guilt. If he had been more watchful, they wouldn't be in this situation in the first place.

Maka gave him a slow, pleased, sweet smile. She closed the distance between them, wrapping her arms around him and resting her head on his shoulder. Soul's breath hitched as he reached up to hug her back, caught off guard at how right it felt to hold her like this. He awkwardly patted her back until she pulled away and leaned back against the pillows.

He patted her hair and stood up. "I'm gonna go home and get some sleep. You should do the same." Maka nodded and sleepily waved goodbye. Soul left. Had he looked back, he would have seen the tears that were silently slipping down his meister's face.

Maka angrily wiped the tears from her cheeks. She felt so ashamed that she could be so jealous, so utterly selfish in wanting to keep Soul all to herself. She sniffled a little, and took a deep, resigned breath. It wasn't fair to Soul. At all. She was just going to have to suck it up and deal with it.

"Maka?" A small voice from the other side of the room called out. "Are you alright?"

"Why do you even care, Justin?" she asked, her voice full of betrayal and scorn. Justin remained quiet, and Maka figured he was going to take the smart route and leave her alone.

"Because we were friends once." came the small reply, just as Maka had nodded off. As it was, Maka was either too tired or too apathetic to hear.

Soul moodily slumped on the couch in their apartment. He was too worked up to fall asleep. He sighed, looking around the tiny apartment that he and Maka shared. When most of the kids at Shubishen talked of home, they talked of mothers, fathers, and pets even. Places far and wide. But for Soul, this place, this tiny, unremarkable apartment was home.

His family had been aristocratic, cold and unfeeling. His house had been a stately manor that came with high expectations, snobbery, and pristine behavior. He was never allowed to be himself, had been punished for even the smallest mistakes.

He had jumped at a chance to escape that life. That was all his weapon abilities had been to him. A one way ticket out of the Evans family, away from a place that could never truly be home. Then he met Maka, and suddenly, he had a goal that, for the first time in his life, he had been able to choose for himself. He came to value his weapon DNA as a part of who he was. He began to value himself. Because of Maka.

Now, everywhere he looked, he saw him and Maka. That was home. Home, for him, was the comfortable familiarity between them as she poured over books on the couch next to him while he channel surfed. It was late nights when the music drove him to the piano that Maka had scrimped and saved for months to buy him, her watching him play with dark and unreadable eyes from the doorway.

Home was the darkness of nightmares that drove Maka to climb under the covers of Soul's bed, shivering with fear. It was in the way he would never admit it out loud, but her being so close at night helped him to sleep easier as well. Home was their friendship, their partnership, the bond between them that came from years of risking life and limb together. The way they communicated in looks, small gestures. And now, because he had screwed up royally, he stood to lose all of that.

Soul let out a bellow. He kicked his school bag in a fit of rage, and all of those hated partner requests spilled out. Soul seized them, ripping all of them up, throwing them in the trash without reading a single one. He didn't want another partner, suspected he couldn't even WORK with anyone who wasn't Maka. Not after this. He sighed, and slumped dejectedly down onto his piano seat.

He turned around and began to play, trying to let the familiarity of the keys soothe the broken ache in his chest. But the entire time he was keenly aware there was no slender figure watching him from the doorway tonight. There might never be again.

The next day went basically the same. Soul came to school early to visit Maka in the infirmary. They chatted a little, but there was an obvious tension between the two of them. Neither of them were really sure how to bridge up the growing gap. Maka chided him for getting so little sleep, but it was half-hearted at best. She had woken up constantly during the night, choking and gasping from nightmares that had been suffocating. She didn't remember it in the morning, but each time a gentle voice from the other side of the room had quietly sung to soothe her back to sleep.

"Is there anything you want me to get from the library for you?" Soul asked.

Maka critically eyed the stack of books next to her. She turned to Soul. "There was a book I wanted to read. It's called Nightshade, by Andrea Creamer. Tsubaki said it's really good. Do you think you could check to see if the library has it?"

Soul nodded. The morning bell rang, and he got up to go to class. Maka grabbed his wrist. Soul turned, half smirk stretched across his features, expecting her to request yet another book.

"Did you think about asking Ao-Chan to partner with you?" The smirk immediately fell off his face, replaced by an unsettled frown.

"Please Soul; she's really sweet, if a little shy. You both really need partners. At least try to work with her." Soul sighed, looking away so she wouldn't see the war waging in his mind. He finally glanced back at her.

"I'll see how it goes." He grumbled at last. Maka faked an encouraging smile, and Soul left. Maka waited a few moments after he had left. She then picked up a book and hurled it at the door he had just walked out of, narrowly missing Tezca Tlipoca as he came in.

"Oh!" Maka squeaked out, "I'm so sorry Tezca-Sempai! I didn't know you were coming in!"

The masked man laughed and waved away her concern. "It's all-right Maka-chan! Good arm, by the way. I sure am glad that book missed!" He patted her head as he made his way past her, towards the bed in the back. Before he reached the curtains, he took off his bear mask and tucked it under his arm. Maka let out a gasp. He turned towards her and winked a dark black, almond shaped eye.

Tezca didn't look anything like Maka had expected. He had tanned skin, and a slightly hooked, rather large nose. His facial features were broad and bold. His course hair was black and straight, kept in a traditional Aztec style, with a slight fringe on his forehead, the rest hanging down towards the nape of his neck. He was completely clean shaven. Maka knew girls who spent hours shaving all the hair off their body who would die of envy if they saw how little facial hair Tezca had.

Tezca threw her a lop-sided grin and vanished behind the curtain. Maka strained her ears to hear what Justin and Tezca could possibly be talking about, but gave up when she realized all she could hear were muffled human-noises. Maka picked up a book, intending to study for next month's course work. She then realized with a pang that she would likely no-longer be allowed to study at Shubishen, now that she could no longer perform her duties as a meister.

Tears welled in her eyes for the third time in two days. She angrily scrubbed at her eyes. She hadn't been this much of a crybaby since she was thirteen.

A dark, tanned hand landed on her shoulder, giving it a light squeeze. "It'll all work out, Maka-Chan. Don't worry." Tezca told her. His kind face looked down at her with a smile.

Maka just shook her head. "I can't take classes here anymore. I'll have to go to a regular school…"

Tezca tilted his head a little bit. "I highly doubt that, Maka-chan. You're far too smart and valuable to the DWMA for them to just let you go. Besides, you hardly need the classes anymore. In fact, you're so smart, I'm sure you could probably teach them!" Maka smiled a little bit at the praise. She looked at the mask still tucked under Tezca's arm.

"Tezca-sempai, if you don't mind me asking, why do you always wear that mask?"

Tezca looked a little startled, as if no one had ever thought to ask him such a question (in fact, no one ever had asked, presuming it was just part of the Aztec culture.)

Tezca blushed slightly, running a hand up his nose. "Well, Maka-chan, you see, when I was younger, everyone teased me about my nose. Most Aztecs have big, hooked, and prominent noses. I'm no exception. They called me all sorts of names. So, I started wearing masks. Eventually, they sorta grew on me. Besides, now no one can recognize me!"

Maka held back a startled laugh. "You know, if anything they make you even more recognizable. And for the record, Tezca-sempai, I've seen noses much worse than yours. As far as noses go, yours isn't half bad." Tezca looked slightly heartened.

"Thank-you, Maka-chan. You may have a point. It seems no matter what mask I put on, people still recognize me. Besides, I can't talk to certain people with them on." He cast a fond, besotted look over his shoulder, to the curtained off bed.

"You really care for him, don't you?" Maka asked Tezca. Tezca nodded.

"He's not really a bad person, Maka-chan. He's just hurt, confused and lonely. He's only been trying to fill in the holes the only way he thought he could." Tezca threw another look back towards Justin. Maka recognized that look. It was the one Tsubaki gave Black*Star when he was being loud and narcissistic, the look Maka often directed towards Soul when he wasn't watching.

It was a look that spoke of fondness, and complete, utter devotion. Maka felt herself soften towards Justin, just a little. If Tezca-sempai loved him, he couldn't really be that bad, could he? Tezca smiled at Maka before going. He rested a hand on her hair.

"Don't worry much about the future, Maka-chan. Things will work themselves out. You just focus on getting better."

"Hai." Tezca, for all his vanity, really wasn't a bad person Maka decided. After that, every time Maka saw him, he wasn't wearing the bear-mask.

Soul was heading back to the infirmary when he ran into Ao in the halls once again. At least this time, there were no bodily collisions. Ao smiled a little and waved. She was about to walk on when Soul called her name.

"Hey, Ao… Can I speak to you for a moment?" His voice must have been completely full of dread, because Ao stopped immediately, concern and a touch of fear pouring from her features.

"What is it Soul-Sempai?"

Soul sighed, rubbing the back of his neck with his hand. "Do you have a partner yet?"

Ao eyed him, shaking her head. Soul sighed again. There went his excuse. He was hoping she would have found someone at the meet and greet the other day. "Then, would you maybe, please meet me at the practice field in an hour? I'll get Stein to supervise."

"Maka's not coming back, is she?"

Soul winced and shook his head. Ao sighed.

"Weellllll. It'll sure be a hassle, but I suppose I could work with you." Ao gave him a slightly teasing smirk.

Soul let out a slightly incredulous laugh. "I thought Maka said you were shy!" Ao gave him a cheeky smile.

"That's what they all think."

Soul just shook his head. "Thanks." Soul said quietly. Ao gave him a sympathetic smile.

"It's the least I can do. I know I'm not her, but I'll do my best."

Soul gave her a small, pained smile, and left to go to the infirmary.

Soul entered the room, and casually pulled Black*Star off Maka. Apparently, he was trying to sign her face again, despite the fact that this time, she could actually fight back. Kidd was once again organizing everything, while the three female weapons sat besides Maka, trying to help her clean stray black marks off her face.

Soul shook his head and tossed the requested book on Maka's lap. It hadn't been in the school library, so Soul had skipped lunch in favor of going out and buying a copy for Maka. He also handed over more notes from today. He was rewarded with another surprised but grateful smile. Maka's expression shifted, imploring, asking a silent question. He nodded and looked away.

Maka felt her heart break. He had asked Ao. He now had a partner. He was done with her now. She put on a brave face, and went back to chatting with Liz, Patti and Tsubaki. She watched Soul out of the corner of her eyes. Tsubaki gave her a puzzled look, but didn't say anything.

"So?" Liz asked. "When are you coming back?" The room fell silent, everyone except Soul, who had gone to talk to Stein, staring at her expectantly. Maka stared down at the blankets. She didn't want to tell everyone she wouldn't be back, but at the same time, she couldn't bring herself to lie to her friends either.

She was saved from answering by Stein, who had come into the room behind Soul.

"She won't be. Her Achilles tendon was almost completely severed. We couldn't heal it completely. In fact, I'm about to head out with Soul and his new partner to their first training session." The whole group stared between the two of them.

Maka weakly waved goodbye to Soul. "Have fun!" she called. Soul nodded and headed off towards the training field with Stein.

Tsubaki grasped Maka's hand, tears shining in her ocean blue eyes. "Oh honey! I'm so sorry!"

Maka just shrugged. "Stuff happens. It's fine, really. I'll be okay." They just stared at her incredulously, sorrow and pity mixing in their gazes.

The awkward tension was broken up by the slamming, and subsequent almost breaking of the infirmary door and wall, by Spirit running into the room. "MAKAAAAA! MAKA PAPA'S HERE!" Spirit flung himself onto his daughter's form.

Maka rolled her eyes and patted her weeping father's back. "I'm FINE, Papa. Get OFF please." Spirit stayed where he was, wailing about his poor, poor baby being hurt, and that "nasty weapon" that didn't take proper care of her.

"MAKA CHOP!" When Spirit didn't comply, Maka used the opportunity to break in her new copy of Nightshade by slamming it into Spirit's cranium. Soul would have been horrified to see the book he just bought her turned into a weapon of mass destruction so soon. The others just rolled their eyes.

Kidd just picked up Spirit, and motioned to the others. "Come on guys, we should let Maka get some rest." Maka waved, shot a glare at her semi-conscious father, and turned to her now slightly bloody copy of Nightshade.

"I'm sorry to hear about you and Soul." Justin called from behind his curtain. "You two were a formidable team. You deserve better."

Maka bit back a stinging reply, thinking of what Tezca said earlier.

"Thanks, Justin-Sempai." Justin made a slight humming noise. Maka went back to her book. She wondered how Soul and Ao would get along. She hoped things went well. She turned back to her book, but found she couldn't quite focus. She blamed the moisture in her eyes on straining to read the tiny text.

Ao and Soul both dripped with seat from running drills over and over under Stein's instruction.

"Again! This time, actually TRY to synch your wavelengths!"

Soul transformed and landed in Ao's waiting hands. He felt the familiar thrum of soul resonance. It wasn't quite right though. There was something, off, like trying to pair with Black*Star or Kidd. At least Ao could actually wield him without burning her hands, which was surely a good sign.

Her wavelength wasn't unpleasant either. It was smooth and gentle. The only problem, really, was that it wasn't Maka's. She wasn't a bad meister either. She was strong and skilled, courtesy of working with the scythe part of Tsugumi's halberd form. They ran through the drill again. This time they actually managed to hit the wooden dummy in the field, slicing it into sharp, jagged pieces.

Stein eyed their work critically. This was the first time they had successfully cut up the target in three hours. He sighed. "Not bad. A few more sessions and maybe you can take on a very low leveled mission. Now, do it again! Five more times! SUCSESSFULLY!" Stein bellowed.

Both Ao and Soul looked at each other and groaned. They were going to be here for another hour. Soul took a deep breath, transforming once again to repeat the tedious process.


	3. Chapter 3

The next few weeks passed in a blur. Soul went back and forth between home, Maka's bedside, and training with Ao. Finally, after six weeks, Maka was allowed to go home. She was still weak and unsteady, and could not put any weight on her foot. She would be in a full plaster cast for at least another three weeks. But, she could finally sleep in her own bed, which is exactly what she did once they got home.

Soul shook his head and laughed at her. He smiled fondly, if not a tad bit worriedly. They had been arguing more and more lately. Soul would try to help, catching her when she stumbled, getting her water when she complained of being thirsty, pulling up the blankets for her. Things he had always done without really thinking about it. Every time, she had grown more and more snappish with him.

\Soul was confused, and more than a little hurt. He didn't know what was up with her. He shrugged it off, figuring she must be grouchy from staying in the hospital for so long. He usually was after an extended stay.

He went into the kitchen, figuring he would make dinner for the two of them. He quietly bustled about the kitchen, humming a piano piece he was composing under his breath as he worked. He was so focused on the song and making dinner he didn't notice Maka hobble in on her crutches.

"Soul? It's my night to cook dinner."

Soul glanced over his shoulder with a shrug. "You needed to sleep. S'not a big deal."

Maka huffed. "Give me the spatula. I'll finish up."

Soul shook his head. "It's fine. I'm almost done anyways. Go sit down. Those crutches must be killing your arms."

pMaka turned red. "I can cook just fine Soul! Give me the spatula! It's my night! Just because I'm hurt doesn't mean I'm incapable of doing anything!"

Soul just blinked. "I didn't say you were incapable! You were asleep, and I was hungry! I figured I might as well make you some while I was in here anyways! Sorry!" But, he didn't give her the spatula. He just turned his back on her, finishing up and putting the food onto plates. This proved to be a mistake, as a few moments later he wound up with a book lodged in his head.

"MAKA-CHOP!"

"Owww woman! What was that for?!"

"I told you to give me the spatula!"

"Fine! Here! Take it!"

"It's too late now!" She cried, storming from the room.

Soul just stared after her, completely and utterly bewildered. He looked down at the plates. He was just trying to be nice. It was his fault she was hurt, after all. He sighed, wrapping up and putting her plate in the fridge in case she wanted it later. What was it with girls and blowing up at the tiniest of things?

Maka curled up in a furious little ball in her bed. She knew she was being unfair, and that she should go back out and apologize. She just couldn't help it. She had seen Soul cooking, and with a pang wondered if someday he would be cooking for Ao instead of her. She had just blown up inside, and let it all out, spilling in a messy fit of emotions all over Soul.

She inhaled deeply, taking in the smell of parmesan and spaghetti. He had gone to the trouble of making her favorite dish, just the way she liked it. Her shoulders slumped a little as she sat up, and reached for the crutches. She hobbled back out to the kitchen.

She found Soul gone and a note on the table telling her where to locate her food. She pulled it out, and re-heated it. She sat by herself in the gloomy little kitchen, not bothering with the lights, and morosely ate her spaghetti. She tried to resign herself to the fact she may not sit in this kitchen and eat much longer.

Soul laid on his bed and wondered at the woman he was living with. She was quirky, grumpy, and had a startling tendency to smash books into his head, but he wouldn't trade her for the world. His mind turned to the awkward conversation he had with Ao this morning regarding living situations.

 _They were both panting and wiping sweat off their browns from their successful training session. Stein had been impressed; he decided to send them on a small mission tomorrow. They would be taking down a relatively young kishin egg on the outskirts of Death City, to further test their abilities as a combative team._

 _Ao had looked over at Soul. "I hear Maka's going home tonight."_

 _"Yeah. Thank Death. I can't take any more complaining about stiff hospital beds or Kidd and Black*Star driving her nuts."_

 _Ao laughed. They had become friends in the past few weeks. Ao was a hard worker and determined, but she wasn't very comfortable with taking charge. She was getting better, but to be able to stay alive while hunting kishins, a meister had to be a quick thinker and decisive._

 _"You know… meisters and weapon pairs are supposed to live with each other soo.. Do you maybe want to move in together?" Ao stared at Soul, head tilted to the left, waiting patiently for an answer._

 _Soul choked and spluttered on the water he had been sipping, caught completely off guard. "What?!" He asked._

 _Ao rolled her eyes a little. "You, me, Maka, and that weird cat you keep telling me about. Roommates. Shared rent. That stuff. Did I dumb it down enough for you?" Soul mock glared at her, and then let loose a breath._

 _She was right. Shubishen did encourage partners to live together. It was almost required in fact. But at the same time… It was bad enough he had to work with another meister. To invite Ao to live in his home, the one sacred space he and Maka had left together… It felt like he would be betraying Maka in the biggest way imaginable. He just couldn't. Not yet. Possibly not ever._

 _Ao took one look at his troubled face and understood. "It's fine. It was just a thought. Let's just see how this mission tomorrow goes! Anyhoo, Tsugumi, Anya and Meme and I are meeting Liz, Patti, Jaquie and Kim down at DeathBucks, so I'll see you tomorrow!" With that she waved and ran off._

Soul groaned and rolled over, stuffing his face and a fist into his pillow. He really hoped sleep would come fast, so he could get the whole ordeal over with.

Maka and Soul slowly walked up the long staircase to Shubishen. Soul was tempted to pick Maka up and carry her, but recalling the fights over the last few days, wisely decided it would not be appreciated. Kidd was waiting for them at the top.

p"Hello Maka, may I speak with you in the Death Room for a few minutes?"

Maka nodded uncertainly. She turned to Soul. "Good luck on your mission today." She said weakly before hobbling after Kidd.

"What did you need to see me about, Kidd?" She asked once they were seated in the Death room.

"I want to offer you a job, Maka."

Maka blinked. "What?"

Kidd looked at her with calm golden eyes. "You can no longer be a meister, and as such, it would be pointless for you to remain a student at Shibishen." Maka deflated a bit.

"So," Kidd continued, "I'd like to ask you to take over Miss Marie's classes while she's out on maternity leave. After she returns, I want you to hold a seminar class on soul resonance theory. I have looked through the history books. What you and Soul have accomplished is simply unheard of. If there is any chance you can teach the other meister/weapon pairs to do this, I simply must ask you to."

Maka looked at Kidd closely, wondering if maybe he was pulling her legs. "But Kidd, I'm hardly older than the others at the Academy, there's no way they'd accept me as a teacher!"

Kidd just laughed. "Maka, we're the same age, and I'm an all-powerful Death God with many people much older than both of us under my command. I'm in charge of all sorts of politics, keeping world peace, monitoring kishins, and yadda yadda yadda. I'd hardly say having a highly decorated sixteen-year-old war veteran as a teacher at a combat school is that much more shocking." Maka had to concede the point.

"Please Maka, say you'll accept." Kidd implored, staring intently at her.

Maka grinned. She wouldn't have to leave Death City or Shubishen after all. She couldn't wait to tell Soul.

Soul, for his part, was having a miserable time on his mission. He had to constantly concentrate on keeping his and Ao's soul wavelengths synchronized. Little Ogre, realizing that Maka's anti-demon wavelength was missing, was wheedling at Soul, trying to weaken him and take advantage of the situation.

Ao was dodging about, hardly able to land a blow on the young kishin soul. Time and time again she barley raised Soul in time to block. Ao hefted him, going in for another failed attack. The creature knocked Soul from Ao's hands, sending them flying in opposite directions.

"Crap!" Soul shouted.

He barely managed to get back up and rush over to stop the creature from going for the now defenseless Ao in time. He grunted at the impact as one of its blades slammed into his scythe arm. He grabbed Ao, and hauled her away to a safe place.

"Stay!" He commanded, and leapt back into the fight.

He danced and dodged around the creature, using both arms as scythes to slice and block the creature. He leapt backwards, flipping and pushing off the sides of an ally wall to launch himself at the creature. He thanked Death for all the maneuver training Maka had him do.

He quickly reduced the monster to nothing but the glowing soul, which he took and slurped down. He calmly walked back over to the shaken Ao.

"Wow." She murmured. "I had no idea it was like this."

Soul nodded. "It's a tough game. It only goes well if you have a partner you can synch up well."

Ao looked at Soul. "I heard you almost became a death scythe at age twelve. You and Maka worked really well together, didn't you?"

Soul growled a little at being reminded about what he had dubbed the 'Freaking seductive cat' incident, but nodded nonetheless. "Yeah. We were a pretty solid team."

"You probably didn't have huge failures like this."

Soul shrugged. Barring the afore mentioned cat incident, no, they hadn't screwed up this royally.

Ao looked at him with a steady gaze. "This isn't going to work. We've been working for almost two months now, and we can't even work together well enough to handle a kishin a pair in the N.O.T class could have taken down with ease."

Soul wanted to protest, to claim that it was still early, but she was right. They should have been able to handle that. Soul also knew that if he couldn't work with Ao, whose soul wavelength was similar to Maka's, he wouldn't be able to work with anyone.

He felt that it should hurt more than it did, deciding to give up on a career as a weapon. It had been such a big part of who he was. He realized though, that it wasn't being a Death Weapon that had always meant so much to him. It was being Maka's weapon that had been the important thing. Without that, the whole thing seemed pointless.

He rested his hand atop Ao's head. "Thanks for giving it a shot, Ao. No hard feelings." He said.

"Hai." She smiled up at him. "Now, please, go tell Maka-Sempai you love her. I'm sick of watching you pine." She punched his arm playfully, and Soul shoved her, trying desperately not to blush. It wasn't working, because Ao erupted into laughter.

"Your cheeks…. There as red as your eyes!" She managed between fits of laughter. In retaliation, Soul tickled her until she cried uncle. He then ruffled his hair, and headed back towards Shubishen, ready to start the next part of his life.

Maka sat on the couch of their living room, practically bouncing with excitement waiting for Soul to get home. She nearly squealed when she heard his motorcycle pulling up. Soul was unprepared for the screeching that assaulted his ears the moment the door closed behind him.

"Soul! Soul guess what!"

Soul laughed at the sight of Maka bouncing giddily on the sofa. He sat next to her though, placing his hands on her shoulders so she would stop, and not further aggravate her injury.

"I've got some news too."

"Mine's bigger."

"Mine's life-changing."

They looked at each other. Maka grinned. "On three then."

"One… Two… Three!"

"I got a teaching job at Shubishen!"

"I resigned as a death scythe."

They both stared at each other. "What?" they asked at the same time.

Soul shook his head. "You first." He said.

Maka was looking at him incredulously, but still had an air of total excitement. "Kidd offered me a job as a teacher at Shubishen. I'll be covering Marie's classes until she returns, and giving a special seminar on soul resonance. Soul, why would you resign?"

Soul shrugged. "I'm still a reservist. I'm just not on active duty anymore. I just… Couldn't work with Ao. Or anyone else."

Maka looked at him imploringly. "Why not?"

Soul shrugged and looked away. "They're not you." He all but whispered. His cheeks were flaming red.

Maka blushed, but she rested her hand on Soul's cheek, head tilted a little. "Soul…? Wasn't it your goal to be a death scythe?"

He sighed. "I love you." He said. "I can't work with anyone who's not you. I don't really care about being a death scythe. I only want to be your scythe."

Maka was shocked, and taken aback. She was nervous, and a little bit scared. But if nothing else, Maka never lacked in bravery.

"I love you too." She said simply.

Later, they weren't really sure who leaned in first, or who finally pulled away for air. They exchanged slow, sweet kisses as they curled up on the couch, discussing how their life was going to change.


	4. Chapter 4

They both ended up working for Shubishen, though not in the ways they had suspected. They became teachers, passing on their experience and knowledge to others in hopes for a better and brighter future.

Eventually, they got married in a small ceremony, with only close friends and family in attendance. Soul's family had come, despite their initial disapproval of Soul marrying someone so musically challenged. (Maka had eventually gotten fed up and given all of them a talking to which they were not likely to ever forget, earning their grudging respect.) Even Maka's mother had briefly returned from her travels to attend. Spirit had managed to behave for once, for which the bride and groom were eternally grateful.

They had three children, two of which had inherited the death scythe genes. All became high ranking members of the Shubishen academy. They couldn't have been more proud.

They ended up living long, happy lives. They didn't go out young in a fierce battle like they had always expected they would.

Maybe they weren't a meister and her weapon anymore, but they would always be partners.

Thank you so much for reading! I hope you enjoyed!


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